Health of Dublin football splits opinion and a warning for Leinster
people have been talking like 'they're dead in the water'
. Darragh doesn't buy that for a second. Once all their players are fit and fully charged, they could, like your average Tesla, be motoring. And if you thought it would be tricky to fit Jim Gavin and Elon Musk in to the same column, think again.
Seán Moran is less convinced that they'll be bouncing back any time soon. 'Realistic Dublin followers have known for some time that
their team won't be challenging for Sam Maguire this year
,' he writes. Worse, 'it's hard to see too many of last Sunday's line-up featuring in future All-Ireland successes.'
Dublin half forward
Seán Bugler begs to differ
, telling Gordon Manning that he remains convinced that they have enough quality to be contenders this year. And he's not concerned about
today's draw for the group stages of the championship
, even if the Dubs end up in the 'proverbial Group of Death'. Which they could – how does, say, a group with Kerry, Armagh, Dublin and Cork sound? Petrifying. Gordon takes you through how the draw will work
Gordon also talks to Dublin hurler Seán Currie who admits that
his second-half penalty at Parnell Park last Saturday did not cross the line
, the award of a goal leaving Wexford none too pleased. Is a VAR-style aid for the officials the solution? Currie says a firm 'no'.
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Jeffrey Lynskey, meanwhile, brings you
a tactical analysis of last weekend's games
, reckoning that unless Clare, beaten by Waterford, improve on their shooting rate and free-taking success, 'the road ahead in Munster could prove an unforgiving one'.
The Meath footballers get a mention in Gordon D'Arcy's column today when he looks ahead to
Leinster's Champions Cup semi-final against Northampton
. Leinster might be sizzlingly hot favourites, but if they don't get their mindset right, 'they will be introduced to sport's glorious unpredictability'.
Gordon was on the Leinster team that beat Northampton in the 2011 Heineken Cup Final, among his opponents that day
Phil Dowson, the current Northampton coach
. Johnny Watterson asks Dowson if he recalls that day. 'Big time,' he says, although he'd probably like to forget – his side led 22-6 at half-time, and lost 33-22.
Louise Quinn, the third most capped Republic of Ireland international of all time, had her ups and downs through her career too, but on
announcing her retirement from football
on Tuesday, she reflected on her many highs, none more memorable than that appearance at the World Cup finals.
And in horse racing, Brian O'Connor reports on the opening day of the Punchestown festival when
Marine Nationale completed a Champion Chase double
, following up his victory at Cheltenham last month. And Brian previews today's action,
the highlight the Gold Cup
. Galopin Des Champs finished runner-up the last two seasons. Third time lucky?
TV Watch
: There's more racing from the Punchestown festival on RTÉ 2 this afternoon (3.30-6.30), the Gold Cup (at 5.30) the big one, and this evening TG4 has live coverage of the Ulster under-20 final between Donegal and Tyrone (7.30). Half an hour later,
Barcelona and Inter Milan
kick off in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final (RTÉ 2, Premier Sports 1 and TNT Sports 1),
Paris Saint-Germain having got the better of Arsenal
in the first of the semi-finals last night.
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Irish Daily Mirror
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Kilkenny have broken their silence on the All-Ireland semi-final scoreboard fiasco which they say caused 'extreme frustration'. However, county board chairman PJ Kenny said there was never any question of the game with eventual champions Tipperary being replayed after the Croke Park scoreboard displayed the wrong score after recording a Noel McGrath wide as a point, causing Kilkenny to chase goals late on when points may have salvaged extra time for them. As it was, referee James Owens reported the final score as 4-20 - rather than 4-21 - to 0-30 in favour of Tipperary, meaning that there was no avenue for a replay, not that Kilkenny were pursuing one in any event. Although Kilkenny held their silence, Kenny said that lines of communication between them were open at all times in the aftermath of the game and that they received an apology for the error. He told the KCLR Hurling Podcast: 'There was communication that evening after the match. Obviously there was extreme frustration with the players, management and the county board and all the fans as well who paid to go to the match. There was deep frustration. We were in talks with Croke Park from the very start that evening. We knew and under no rule, it was never going to a replay. 'We didn't want to broadcast it all over the front pages and we did talk to Croke Park regularly on the Sunday and Monday and we looked for an explanation. We were also conscious as well, Tipperary and Cork were in the All-Ireland final. There was no point in taking away from their… there was nothing to be gained that way but we were in talks. 'Croke Park took full responsibility. They wrote a letter which we actually read out at the county board meeting the week after that. They took full responsibility for what happened. They issued an apology, particularly they felt for the players and management and they're probably the people who put in the most effort in it so it wasn't an easy time.' Kenny added that Croke Park pledged to put procedures in place to ensure that there isn't a repeat episode, something that he said Kilkenny will hold them to account on. 'They say they're looking at procedures going forward and we will enquire about them going forward - we won't just let that go. We need to have that it won't happen again because it was a very stressful time and look, when you're playing and you're chasing a lead, the scoreboard, it does affect your decision-making, it does affect your decision-making.'
Irish Independent
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Irish Examiner
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'We need to make sure it won't happen again, it was a very stressful time': Kilkenny chairman PJ Kenny
Kilkenny GAA chairman PJ Kenny has described the "extreme frustration" felt in the county after the scoreboard error in their All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Tipperary. Having already received an apology from Croke Park for the error that impacted the closing stages of the fixture — which eventual All-Ireland champions Tipp won by two-points — Kenny has detailed the thinking in Kilkenny, insisting that despite knowing a replay would not occur, they were in contact with GAA authorities during a period he described as "very stressful". On the day, both teams would have been of the understanding, via the scoreboard, that Noel McGrath's point attempt in the 70th minute had put the Tipp four points ahead. Following his attempt, McGrath's shot was waved wide but the scoreboard counted it as a score. After a Jordan Molloy point in the second minute of additional time, Derek Lyng's men — thinking they required a goal — went looking for exactly that to force extra-time when they were in fact only two points behind. "There was communication that evening after the match," Kilkenny chairman PJ Kenny told KCLR Hurling Podcast. "There was extreme frustration from the players, management, and county board, and all the fans, as well, who paid to go to the match. "There was deep frustration, we were in talks with Croke Park from the very start of that evening. We knew it was never going to a replay; there's no rule that allows for that, and we were told that fairly straightaway. "We talked to them, but we didn't want it broadcast all over the front pages. We did talk to Croke Park regularly on the Sunday and Monday and we looked for an explanation." Kenny noted that the Kilkenny county board was conscious that there was nothing to be gained by taking away from then finalists — Tipperary and Cork. "We were also conscious as well that Tipperary and Cork were in the All-Ireland final and there was no point in taking away from their day," Kenny said. "There was nothing to be gained from it that way, but we were in talks, Croke Park took full responsibility, they wrote a letter which we actually read out at the county board meeting the Monday after (a week later). "They took full responsibility and issued an apology, particularly they felt for the players and management. They are the people who put in the most effort, so it wasn't an easy time. There's nothing we could do. They said they are putting procedures in place. "All I can say is Tipperary won the All-Ireland and they were well worthy. Congratulations to them. It was disappointing for us, but there's nothing much we can do now." The chairman added that despite Croke Park's plan to insert procedures, Kilkenny will be keeping a close eye on the action the GAA takes so that there are no further instances of the situation. "In Croke Park, there is about six people on the sideline there, the referee's report had the score in at 4-20 to 0-30 and we were sent on a copy of that, so immediately that's the score you go by. Just human error was basically the cause; whoever was on the scoreboard put up that extra point. "Maybe I think when you have HawkEye you should be able to link it all in and be able to check for scores, I don't know how they can't stop play. "They say they're looking at procedures and we will enquire about them going forward, we won't just let that go, we need to make sure it won't happen again, because it is was very stressful time." Kenny also credited the Kilkenny players' — who were kept up-to-date with the talks — decision not to speak out in the media. "When you're a player and you're chasing a lead, it does affect your decision-making," Kenny said. "Credit to the players, they didn't go out in the media either, looking to make a story either. They are the most important people in this."
